


Happy We'll Be Beyond the Sea

by thewightknight



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Cruise Ships, Fake Marriage, Family Drama, Happily Ever After, M/M, Modern AU, Overprotective Parents, brief reference to homophobia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-17
Updated: 2018-09-17
Packaged: 2019-07-12 20:49:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16003052
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewightknight/pseuds/thewightknight
Summary: Kylo just wanted to get away from his loving but smothering family and two years of studying for his masters in marine biology at the Sydney Institute of Marine Science seemed like just the ticket. Unfortunately, his mother decided the best way to send him off was to book him and everyone else on an extended cruise. Shortly after departure, he met a like minded soul, who was also determined to find all the places on this hellish voyage where people weren't.Leia was always worried that her son would do something ruinously impulsive. Hux's friends were always cajoling him to be friendlier and spend more time with people. Between the two of them, they hatched a plan, to get revenge on the people who wouldn't let them live their life as they wanted to live it.





	Happy We'll Be Beyond the Sea

**Author's Note:**

> for the Kylux Mini Bang 2018. [Art](https://thewightknightwrites.tumblr.com/search/sixofwinter) by the amazing [sixofwinter](sixofwinter.tumblr.com)! Inspired by [this tumblr post](https://thewightknight.tumblr.com/post/153390566428/drst-lesbianshepard-so-my-english-professor). Title from [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=43GkQcl2ID0), because I am a sap.

_            I don’t know why I let her talk me into this,  _ Kylo thought as he shuffled along with the rest of the herd up the gangplank.  _ No, wait, I do. _ He'd learned at an early age that what his mom wanted his mom got. In his whole life, he couldn't remember one time when she hadn't managed to bring people around and get them to agree to whatever she'd decided they were going to do.

           Moving to Australia had been his grand plan to get away and start living his own life. It had seemed like a good plan, but had hit a snag in the execution. Which he should have expected, but hindsight is a bitch. Oh, well. Once he got through this cruise, he'd be free.

           He kept telling himself that as he brought up the rear of the group. Even with that carrot dangling on a stick, he still contemplated slipping away and getting lost in the crowd. But then Leia turned and fixed him with that stare she had and he sighed. She'd never let him miss the boat, and it's not like he could hide anyways. Why couldn’t he have taken after her in height instead of Han?

           Leia led the pack up the gangplank to the cruise ship, with Han and Amilyn immediately after. Uncle Chewie and Aunt Malla followed on their heels. Then came Luke and Mara and Cade and Rey and Rey’s girlfriend Jess. Uncle Lando and Aunt Val followed with their gaggle of kids and grandkids. After them were Poe and Finn and Kes and Finn’s parents, whose names Kylo couldn’t ever remember. And there he was, bringing up the rear.

Lucky him, the cause of this whole circus. Because of course Leia couldn’t let him go off to start work on his Masters in marine biology at the Australian Institute of Marine Science without making a production of it. No, a simple airline flight wouldn’t do for her only son. She had to book a cruise for the whole family, blood and found, to see him off.

At least she hadn’t decided to move to Australia to keep an eye on him. Yet. Her mostly unspoken worry that he’d do something she’d consider reckless or impulsive without her constant supervision was one of the major reasons why he’d chosen Australia to begin with. There were several other institutions he could have attended. Most of them were on his home continent. But being on the other side of the world had seemed like a good chance to finally get out from under her thumb and try to find out what he’d be like as his own person. And it had resulted in this. They’d be at sea for almost three weeks, and he’d have little chance of escaping and getting a moment to himself for any of it.

“Come on, Ben! You don’t want to get left behind, do you?” Rey called out.

I wish.

As if she could hear his thoughts, Leia scowled back at him as she reached the top of the gangplank.

           He had his own cabin, at least, although it was about the size of his apartment’s bathroom. Since Leia hadn’t managed to get them all in a clump of rooms together he had this place as a refuge when he needed to escape.

           After he’d stowed his luggage in the drawers under the single bed he flopped onto the mattress. His feet hung over the end. Perfect. Pulling the pillow over his head, he decided he’d skip watching the ship leave dock. This might be his only chance for a bit of peace and quiet for the rest of the day.

          The buzzing of his phone woke him from a pleasant dream that dissipated as soon as he opened his eyes.

_           You gotta come check out the upper deck, man. It’s awesome! _

          Of course Poe’d already begun exploring the ship.

          A second text followed hard on the first, a picture of Poe and Finn in their Hawaiian shirts (why, for an Australian cruise?). They had drinks in their hands and stood in front of a resort-style pool surrounded by lounge chairs.

          “Water in the middle a boat. What a concept.” He’d rather hit the gym and work out some of his stress. But, now that he thought about it, a drink didn't seem like a bad idea. Leia had sprung for the top of the line food and drink packages, after all. He decided he could hear a beer calling his name.

The cruise ship had five bars. There was a map in the drawer of the miniscule end table next to his bed. He made his choice by closing his eyes and pointing. Random chance landed him in one midship, where they held some of the nightly shows.

           All the other fools on this floating coffin were still up top, watching the land recede, so he had the place almost to himself. The only other person besides employees in the place was a thin man with a shock of red hair, sitting at the end of the bar. He nursed a giant glass of something fruity-looking and bristling with umbrellas.

           Kylo laid claim to the stool at the other end, surreptitiously watching the other man in the giant mirror on the wall. When the bartender sauntered over to take his order, some wild urge overtook him.

"I'll have what he's having," he said, pointing to the redhead.

"Don't. It's vile."

"It can't be that bad. You've drunk half of it."

The other man shrugged. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Making the drink involved pouring from six different bottles and several shots of a painfully red syrup into an industrial blender with several scoops of ice. The whirring of the blades echoed throughout the nearly empty room. Sugaring the rim with a practiced motion, the bartender poured out the resultant sludge into the glass with a flourish. She topped it off with several spears of canned fruit, three paper umbrellas, and a straw big enough you could suck a gummy worm through it. He held out his armband for her to scan and eyed the concoction dubiously.

"To your health!" The redhead lifted his glass in Kylo's general direction with both hands and took a healthy swig from his straw. Kylo followed suit, grimacing at the taste of cheap rum and artificial colors. "See? Told you!"

"You weren't kidding." Fishing his wallet out, he pulled out a five and dropped it in the bartender's tip jar with an apologetic shrug.

The drink didn't get better with a second taste, or a third, but he kept trying. Kylo kept stealing glances at his companion in the mirror over the bar as they nursed their respective fishbowls. He didn't look away fast enough at one point and the other man scowled.

"I'm not looking for company."

Kylo met his glare with a shrug and a grin.

"If you were, you'd be up there with all the happy people, right?"

"Right."

The other guy's phone went off at that point, sparing Kylo from trying to come up with a response. He fished it out of his back pocket, scowling at the screen. Kylo's went off a moment later, with another text from Poe.

_ Dude, where are you? You're missing all the fun? _

_ Having my own kind of fun right now, thanks, _ he typed back. Angling his phone just right, he managed to catch a reflection of his drink in the mirror and hit send.

_ Wow. Good luck with that. He's a looker! _

What? Oh. He hadn't noticed, but he'd accidentally caught his grumpy companion in the frame. Might as well roll with it.

__ _ Wish me luck! _

He got a string of emojis back, eyes winking and thumbs up. Shaking his head, he took another drink. He'd gotten about two thirds of the way through the glass now and the taste hadn't improved. It did seem stronger the lower he got, so it had that going for it.

A curse from the other end of the bar drew his attention. His drinking buddy still scowled at his phone as he typed madly away.

"Your friends after you too?" Kylo asked.

"You might not have picked up on this from our short acquaintance, but I am not a 'people person'." He made actual finger quotes around the words as he said them. "At their insistence, I am now stuck in a floating can with three thousand plus people for the next eighteen days. Despite what I told them after they insisted I come with them on this foolishness, they are now acting surprised that I am doing exactly what I told them I would."

"What's that?"

"Looking for all the places where people aren't."

"You and me both!" It was Kylo's turn to raise his glass.

"You're not here by choice either?"

"Oh, no. Didn’t you hear? A luxury cruise with the whole family is hands’ down the best way to move to Australia to get away from your whole family."

“That is …. Words fail me. I think you win.”

“I’ll drink to that!”

[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/166989358@N08/30853887268/)

Although his drinking mate had started before him they both slurped the last bit of sludge at of the bottom of their stemmed fishbowls at the same time. As Kylo was deciding whether he could stomach another, a gaggle of twenty-somethings in bikini tops, swim wraps and stacked sandals tottered in.

“Shit. Time’s up!” He shoved back from the bar, snagging the paper parasol in case he had to prove he'd been having fun instead of sulking in his room.

“Before you go, I’ve got a proposition for you?”

It’s a good thing Kylo had already finished his drink because he’d have choked on that line otherwise.

“Nothing like that. It’s occurred to me that you and I will both be looking for dead zones in this hellish floating thing. Perhaps we could share notes? Compare quiet spots?”

“That sounds great.”

“Here.” A phone slid across the bar, contacts screen open. He typed in his name and number and slid it back. A few seconds his phone buzzed.

_ Hello, Kylo, this is Hux. Operation "Hide from All the Idiots" commencing now. _

The thought that he had someone in his corner sustained him through most of dinner, despite the fact that Leia had managed to wrangle them seats at the captain's table. He spotted Hux across the room. Hux was stuck between a blonde Amazon and a sallow looking fellow whose rather mousy face was offset by a riotous tumble of black curls. He seemed to be trying to ignore their attempts to draw him into conversation with the trio of bland looking twenty somethings they shared their table with. Kylo pulled out his phone and sent off a quick message.

_ Hang in there. They'll serve dessert soon. _

The answer came almost instantly.

_ I may fall on my butter knife before it arrives. _

Leia caught him smiling as he looked up from his phone and her eyebrow shot up. Poe noticed as well, and as usual he started running off at the mouth about it.

"Are you texting that guy from earlier? You got digits already? All right, my man! I didn't know you had it in you."

As usual, Poe's words carried. Leia frowned.

"You will be careful, won't you, Ben? Getting attached to someone you'll never see again will be a distraction you don't need. Not with with all the other changes you're making."

Great. More unsolicited and unnecessary advice.

"I can take care of myself, mom."

Leia started to say something else, but Amilyn intervened. Grabbing one of Leia's braids, she pulled Leia in for a kiss.

"Let the boy have some fun, Leia."

Torn between thankfulness at the intervention and annoyance at being referred to as "boy," he took out his frustrations on the piece of cake he'd snagged from the dessert buffet.

He managed to slip away after dinner when he learned what the plans for the evening were. There might be fates worse than cruise ship karaoke, but he couldn’t think of any off the top of his head. Instead of retreating to his room, he decided he’d explore, looking for more of those places where people weren’t. He went about it in a random fashion, walking until he hit a branch or stairwell. He'd then pick left or right or up or down depending on which direction he heard the least voices from.

About twenty minutes of wandering put him on the aft deck overlooking the lifeboats. There were some lounge chairs still out here, not put away for the night. Snapping a picture, he sent his location off to Hux.

_ First outpost established for Operation Hide from All the Idiots. _

__ __ _ That’s a lot to type out. Maybe we should call it “OHAI”? _

He didn’t get a response, but he hadn’t expected one. He’d been lucky to slip away on this, the first night at sea. Everyone in his group would assume he was talking to someone else for a while. The group Hux was traveling with couldn’t be as large as Kylo’s so he didn’t have that advantage.

Sprawling out on one of the lounge chairs, he pulled out his phone. He’d already read every one of his advisors’ papers three times but on every reread he came up with new thoughts for his thesis.

When Hux plopped down into the lounger next to him he jumped and let out a frightened little squeak. Hux didn’t seem to notice. He was too busy scowling, maybe?

“Why did I ever think having friends would be a good idea?”

The question seemed rhetorical, so Kylo didn’t bother answering.

“ _ You need to get out more, Hux. You shouldn’t work so much, Hux. How will you ever meet someone if you never leave the office, Hux?  _ As if I need a boyfriend. Someone else to nag at me and meddle with my life.”

Boyfriend. Huh.

Hux continued to rant on and Kylo watched, fascinated, as he gestured with his elegant hands and contorted his face into various expressions that Kylo supposed mimicked the friends he was disparaging. It was one of the most adorable things he’d ever seen. His phone forgotten, he stared, and eventually Hux noticed his rapt attention. Blushing, he trailed off.

“Er. Sorry about that.”

“No, don’t apologize. That was something to watch.”

“I do have a tendency to go off, I know. And I’ve spoiled the whole point of this getting-away-from-people thing.”

“That’s all right. This is so much more peaceful than being stuck at a table in the middle of my family listening to people sing off key.”

Hux shuddered. “Oh dear gods. When I saw nightly karaoke on the list of scheduled events I considered jumping over the side for a few seconds.”

“Most of my family are pretty good singers. It’s everyone else on this boat that I’m worried about.”

“Well, since they can’t take over the whole lounge I think we’re better off here.”

“They could if they put their mind to it.”

“There can't be that many of them?”

Kylo laughed. “You have no idea. Let’s see.” He started counting off on his fingers. "Besides me, there's my mom and my dad. And then my mom's girlfriend and my dad's boyfriend, and my dad's boyfriend's wife and their three daughters. Plus two of their kids are married, and they've got kids."

          He’d reached the end of his fingers and almost gone through his first hand again. "My uncle and his wife and their two kids and my cousin's girlfriend. Then there's Poe, who isn't related but might as well be. I think his mom and mine used to have a thing, but nobody ever says much about it.”

           And he'd had to start over on his first hand again. “So Poe and his dad and Poe's boyfriend and his boyfriend's parents. Oh and my uncle Chewie and aunt Malla. They aren't actually related to us but they're still family."

Hux looked shell-shocked. "That is quite a lot. I can't even imagine."

"No big family reunions for you?"

"Hardly. There was only me and my father and step-mother, and a family friend who kind of adopted me."

"Was?"

"Yes. It's just me and my father now but we don't talk anymore." Hux snorted and waved his hand as if in dismissal. "What a polite way to say he disowned me when I came out. Luckily neither my step mother nor that friend agreed with him. They each left me a sizeable inheritance. So dear old dad can stew in his corner office on the fifteenth floor and watch his precious family legacy die with him, knowing I'm out here living the good life, and I will never have to crawl back to him with out-turned pockets. Good riddance."

“Who dragged you out here then?”

“Some friends from uni.”

“Uni?”

“University. Americans!” Hux rolled his eyes, but the twitch of his lips took the sting out of his words.

“Huh.”

Conversation petered out after that. Kylo returned to his paper and Hux pulled out his phone as well. The light from the screen washed over him, giving him an unearthly glow and Kylo couldn’t help stealing a glance now and then.

After a half an hour or so he started yawning. He decided to call it a night when he realized he’d reread the same section three times and hadn’t remembered a word of it. Falling asleep out here under the stars had its temptations, but the temperature had started to drop and there weren’t any blankets out here.

“I’m going to head out.” Hux jumped at his words. It almost seemed as if he’d forgotten that Kylo was there.

“Good night, then.”

“Here’s to surviving tomorrow,” he said in way of farewell. Hux waved a hand at him, still engrossed in whatever he’d been reading on his phone.

As he curled up on his side in his too-small bed, he whispered to himself, “Only seventeen more days.”

The next day Leia seemed determined not to let him out of her sight, payback for disappearing the night before. First he had to endure “family bonding time.” A show at brunch followed, then indoor skydiving.

He only managed to escape once, pleading the need for a shower before dinner. Poe and Finn caught him when he emerged from his quarters. They had been lying in wait, he thought. Those traitors.

He had zero opportunity to scout out quiet spots, and didn’t get a text from Hux all day.

He’d caught sight of Hux once, looking down from the balcony where they waited in line for the skydiving. His friends were playing bocce on the foredeck and he’d appropriated a deck chair. He'd managed to get his hands on another of those virulently red slushes. A giant sun hat hid his face.

_ Lucky bastard, _ he sent off. _ I need one of those so badly. _

_ Where are you? _

__ __ _ Look up. _

Hux did, one hand folding back the brim of his hat. When he saw Kylo standing above him, he raised his glass in salute.

Unfortunately, Leia noticed the exchange. She didn’t say anything. She didn’t have to, though. The look she gave Kylo spoke for itself.

It looked like one of Hux’s friends had noticed, too. A blonde Amazon caught Kylo’s eye with her exuberant waving and gave him a thumbs’ up before hoisting herself out of the pool, drenching Hux in the process. He took a minute to admire the physics of her silver lamé swimsuit, which should not have stayed in place the way it was. Kylo normally preferred men, but he could make an exception in her case. Hux ended up looking like a drowned cat, shirt plastered to his narrow frame, hat drooping down around his ears. He said something scathing as he hoisted himself out of the chair before stalking off, disappearing from Kylo’s view.

_ Lucky bastard, _ he repeated to himself as the line moved and took him away from the railing.

That night at dinner he didn’t see Hux anywhere in the dining room. When he was in the middle of filling up his plate at the buffet his phone buzzed with a text notification. He had to wait until he sat down to check and Leia frowned at him again.

“Is it that man again? You need to be careful, Ben.”

The unnecessary reminder, along with the use of his old name, was too much. Abandoning his plate, he walked out of the dining room, ignoring Leia as she called out after him.

The bar from the first day was packed and he nearly tripped over a couple next to the lifeboats. From the looks of it, the guy was proposing. Not wanting to disturb them, he tiptoed backwards until he’d made it back around the corner. His phone buzzed from his pocket and he remembered he’d never checked what the last message was. Pulling it out and unlocking it, he found two texts from Hux.

__ _ Did you know karaoke is Japanese for tone-deaf? I am not going to survive this. _

And then,  _ 86 on the map. _

He had to find a map first. As he located 86 on the list in the margins, he made a note to always carry one in his pocket from here on out. It turned out to be a cafe, reportedly only open for breakfast and brunch. It had been closed by way of velvet ropes and chromed stands, easily ignored.

           Somehow Hux had managed to abscond with a couple bottles of wine and two glasses. Most of one bottle was gone already by the time Kylo arrived. Red, he saw with a sigh. Oh, well. Beggars can’t be choosers. He took the proffered glass, swirling it around before taking a sip. He was pleasantly surprised to find he liked it.

“I know. The last thing you expect to find when you’re in floating hell is a good wine.”

They didn’t talk that evening, but Kylo found it as pleasant as the evening before. It was the most companionable silence he’d ever shared with another being, more restful even than his uncle’s meditation exercises. It could have been wine that let him sleep soundly that night, but he was sure the company had helped.

They established five more  _ OHAI  _ strongholds over the next several days. One of the gift shops did custom items. After a little doodling he got two keychains printed up with the acronym in slanted block letters, printed on bright red plastic. He carried them around in his pocket for the rest of the day, fiddling with them whenever he got exasperated but couldn’t slip away. Their presence, and knowing he had someone “in his pocket,” so to speak, helped make those times more bearable though.

_ I can do this,  _ he thought.  _ I can make it through this cruise, and then I’ll be in Australia on my own, and everything will be okay. _

He should have known better.

“Gonna canoodle the night away with your new boyfriend again tonight, kid?” Han teased as Kylo’s phone buzzed. Leia had seemed busy chatting with one of their tablemates, but she zeroed in on Han’s words, her expression carefully blank.

“You are spending a lot of time with this man, Ben. I do hope you’re being careful. We know nothing about him.”

“You don’t know anything about her,” Kylo gestured to the woman sitting to Leia’s left, “but that hasn’t keeping you from talking to her all night.”

”Ben …” she started, but he cut her off.

“Should I find out his full name and social security number, so you can run a background check?” She’d done that on the last two men he’d tried to date.

“You know I’m only looking out for you, after what happened.”

“That was a long time ago, mom. I can take care of myself.”

“Still, Ben …”

“Enough!” He stood up so fast his chair fell over, hitting the deck with a crash, drawing eyes from all the surrounding tables. Han started to say something and either Chewie or Lando must have kicked him under the table, because he winced and shut his mouth with a snap. Leia didn’t get the same treatment.

“I’m just trying to look after you.”

“Stop treating me like a toddler. And you know I hate being called Ben.” Onlookers probably thought he was acting like a toddler, but he couldn’t find it himself to care.

He ended up back on the aft deck. When his phone buzzed he considered ignoring it, not sure he even wanted Hux’s company at first. When it went off a second time he gave in. The messages were from Hux, and after a few moments’ thought he sent back his location.

This time Hux had snagged a bottle of scotch.

“Couldn’t manage glasses. I barely managed to hide this behind my hat.” Hux threw his sunhat behind them and it splatted against the bulkhead before coming to rest in a lopsided lump on the deck.

“Bad night for you too?” Kylo asked as Hux offered him the bottle. He took a healthy swig, coughing at the burn, before passing it back.

“One too many inquiries as to when I was going to lure anyone, preferably you, back to my cabin for a night of debauchery.”

If Kylo’d still had the bottle, he would have dropped it. Trying to maintain an outward appearance of calm, he blurted out, “My mother’s sure you’re a gold digger after my trust fund.”

“Hah. As if.”

That stung a little. Something must have shown on his face, because Hux shoved the bottle back at him.

“Bad experience?”

“Yeah. My first year in college. A senior found out who I was and that I had an inheritance from my grandfather. He decided I was going to be his future meal ticket.” He could talk about it now without sounding bitter, but it had wrecked him when he’d found out. “He said or did something that made my mother suspicious so she hired a private detective. Caught him on tape bragging about all the things he’d do with my money once he’d married me.”

“Ouch.”

“Yeah. Ouch.” He took another healthy swig and passed the bottle back. “After that, any guy I tried to date got the fifth degree. Chased them all off, one way or another.”

“I’m surprised no one’s tried to corner me yet.”

Pulling out his phone, Kylo thumbed through his pictures until he came to one of his parents. “If you see this woman coming, run.”

“Likewise, if my friend Phasma is heading in your direction.”

“Is that the blonde giant?”

“The one and only.”

They’d made a serious dent in the bottle by this point. Kylo held it up, eyeing the amber liquid. “We might want to take it easy.”

“Screw moderation.” Hux took it back and upended it. Kylo tried not to stare at the pale column of his neck as he swallowed.

The buzzing of his phone was almost a welcome distraction. It was Han texting him, he saw.

_ Your mom’s thinking about sending out the cavalry. Or I guess it would be Navy? Just let me know you’re okay and I’ll hold her down. _

Sighing, he texted back.  _ I’m fine. I’ll see you in the morning. _

__ _ Don’t get too soused and do anything stupid, _ was Han’s unfortunate parting shot.

“Don’t do anything stupid? Really?” He hadn’t realized he’d said that out loud until Hux snorted.

“No, please, let’s do something stupid. I’m in the mood.”

The alcohol, the location, and a memory of several nights past crystallized at that moment, spurred by the two pieces of plastic in his pocket.

           “Yeah. Stupid. Let’s show ‘em!” He pushed himself out of the lounge chair, digging the matching keychains out. Hux snorted again as he knelt next to Hux’s lounger, holding the keychains up in a parody of a romantic stance. “Wanna pretend to get married?”

It proved remarkably easy to set their plan in motion. They happened to run into the ship’s chief officer as soon as they started to head back to where the people were. Mr. Erso listened to them with a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. After a little urging he agreed to take a picture with them and go ahead with the plan.

“I will probably regret this, but my daughter always says I have no sense of humor. This would amuse her to no end.”

“Tonight’s a night for showing people how wrong they are,” Hux said as they arranged themselves for a pair of selfies, with both his and Kylo’s phones.

After refusing the rest of the bottle as payment Mr. Erso left them in the hall, giggling like fools as they friended each other on Facebook and changed their relationship status.

_ Just got married! _ Kylo captioned his photo, tagging Hux.

_ Met the man of my dreams, _ Hux typed.

“Okay, ‘husband’, what now?”

Hux making air quotes around the word husband was hilarious, and not just because of the alcohol.

“Now, we organize an impromptu reception and party our socks off.”

“For once I am not cringing at the word party. Lead on.”

The rest of the night was a blur, mad dashes between bars, avoiding anyone they recognized while toasting and being toasted by their fellow inmates. They took a few more pictures and posted them, then turned their phones off when the first messages started coming in.

“Let them stew for the rest of the evening,” Hux said as he powered off.

“They’ll kill us tomorrow but it’ll be worth it.”

Kylo didn’t remember most of the rest of the evening, but there was one moment that stuck with him. Someone handed them glasses of champagne. After they toasted each other the crowd of strangers began to chant. “Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!”

Hux’s lips were soft, softer than he could ever have imagined, and sweet from the champagne. He melted into Kylo with a soft gasp, lost in the cheers that rained over them.

After that, they got wrangled onto the dancefloor. Hux rolled his eyes at the opening bars to the music that started playing.

“Shut up and dance,” Kylo told him, spinning him around and drawing him back in.

They moved together like they’d practiced this, swaying in time to the music. Kylo caught himself crooning along with the lyrics.

 

_ Somewhere beyond the sea _

_ Somewhere waiting for me _

_ My lover stands on golden sands _

_ And watches the ships that go sailing _

           They managed to party until the sun crested on the horizon, ending up back where they started as the sky turned pink in the east. One of the lifeboats turned out to have a loose cover. It wasn’t exactly conducive to sleeping but what they did was more along the lines of passing out, so it didn't bother either of them.

It was sometime after noon when they both awoke.

“Ugh.”

“You can say that again. But more softly, please.”

Forcing his eyes open, he saw that Hux looked as bad as he felt.

“I think the seafood buffet died in my mouth,” Hux moaned, and Kylo's stomach lurched in sympathy.

“Coffee. We need gallons of coffee.” He knew he'd whispered but Hux still winced.

“Only if it comes with a chaser of morphine.”

They both lay there, squinting against the increasingly bright light. They'd each claimed a bench in the boat, laying on their backs, legs on either side. Neither of them had gotten sick during the night, which was a minor miracle, but for the first time Kylo was aware of the gentle rocking of the ship.

“They've probably scoured the ship for us by now,” Hux mused.

“Damn. I forgot we turned our phones off.” Fishing his out of his pocket, he turned it back on. It took about thirty seconds to boot up and connect to the ship's WiFi and then it exploded with notifications, almost vibrating out of his hand. He had three voicemails from Leia and one from Han, plus countless texts and Facebook notifications.

“That’s a lot of comments,” Hux groaned as he hoisted himself up.

“Most of them are good, too. Lots of folks happy for us.”

“So when do we break the news?”

“Not until after breakfast.”

They ended up at 86, the little cafe where they’d shared a couple of bottles of red wine on their second evening. Hux insisted on ordering a pitcher of mimosas and four orders of bacon.

“Grease and hair of the dog. Best hangover remedy in the world.”

Lando found them when they were only halfway through the pitcher. He didn’t say anything, just slid a chair over to their table and straddled it, leaning against the back. Words weren’t ever really a necessity with Lando though - his eyebrows could convey encyclopedias.

“How freaked out is mom?” Kylo asked at last. Lando helped himself to a slice of bacon before answering, taking his time chewing. Kylo’s apprehension grew with each bite.

“Freaked out? I guess you could call it that. Those weren’t the words I would have used to describe her, though.” He helped himself to another piece. “Alarmed? Yes. We started with alarmed. Then the disbelief set in. Denial. She was incredulous. And then? Anger. She started insisting we roust the captain out of bed and conduct a ship wide search.”

Lando folded up the piece of bacon and shoved the whole thing into his mouth. “This stuff is really good,” he mumbled as he chewed. “Like, really really good. Who knew the best bacon I’d ever have would be on a cruise ship.” As if knowing Kylo was desperate for him to continue, he took a third slice.

“Well, what happened? Did she wake anyone up? Is she still mad?”

“Don’t worry. Han started feeding her wine. She’s probably as hungover as the two of you are right now, so there won’t be any yelling today. Enjoy the rest of your brunch.”

With that, Lando saluted them with his bacon and stood.

“Oh, I think your friends were looking for you too. Hux, is it? Hi, I’m Ben’s Uncle Lando.” He held out the slice of bacon and bemused, Hux shook it. “Nice to meet you. Be good to this one, okay? We’re all pretty fond of him.” And with that he wandered off, one of their plates of bacon in his hand.

“Why did he call you Ben?” Hux asked after he’d left.

“Oh. That’s technically my name. Ben Solo. I go by Kylo to piss off the family.”

“Huh.” Hux didn’t comment on it any further, instead waving at the waiter and asking for more bacon.

By the time they got to the bottom of the pitcher he almost felt human again. Who knew how long it would last, but he’d enjoy it for as long as it did.

“You were right,” Kylo admitted after he drained the last swallow.

“Of course I was. It’s one of my most endearing qualities.”

“Humble too.”

“Now wherever did you get that idea?”

They grinned at each other over the empty plates and glasses.

“Oi, Hux! There you are, you bastard!”

“Oh gods,” Hux muttered as his giant blonde friend barged into the cafe.

“Look! There he is!” And there was Rey, with Finn in tow.

The relief the mimosas had granted disappeared as three of them descended on their table and started all talking at once.

Phasma started in with “When we said you needed to get out and be more social, Hux, this was hardly what we meant.” Rey ducked under Phasma’s flailing arm and blurted out, “Kylo, are you trying to give Auntie Leia a heart attack?”

Hux grimaced at him, head clasped between his hands.

“How long should we let this go on?” Kylo asked, ignoring everyone but Hux.

“I think we’ve made our point?” Hux mumbled, wincing as Phasma hit a high note.

Nodding, Kylo stood and roared “Enough!” in their faces. It made his head throb but it was worth it for the quiet that followed.

Hux pointed at Phasma. “You’ll all be happy to know that we are not, in fact, actually married, despite your constant needling about my lack of a social life.”

Kylo took over, scowling at Rey and Finn, “And every one of you always telling me I can’t be allowed to live my own life.”

“Now if you will all please bugger off, we were trying to actually enjoy some of the amenities on this floating tin can,” Hux finished.

Phasma shook her head, but left without another word. Rey started to say something and Finn jabbed her in the side with an elbow. She subsided, glaring at Kylo, but let Finn lead her off, shooting him dirty looks over her shoulder until they disappeared around a corner.

“We should make it official, I guess?”

Hux snorted. “Are we going to fake a divorce for our fake marriage?”

“I don’t think we need make things that complicated.”

They each ended up making another Facebook post.

_ Hey, so guess what? Very drunk last night and not really married. Sorry about that! _ He tagged Hux in it before changing his relationship status back to single.

Hux laughed when he showed him.

“I’ll just let your post speak for both of us.”

The deluge of notifications was spread out this time, as they didn’t turn their phones off again. There’d be a lot of apologizing to do later, but Kylo couldn’t bring himself to care. Especially when Hux laughed and he flashed back to that one moment from the night before, the kiss and the dance that followed.

Eventually they parted ways. Kylo stood under the shower in his cabin until the pads of his fingers wrinkled, then drank an entire pitcher’s worth of water before stumbling into bed.

_ It wouldn’t be too bad, being married to Hux for real,  _ was his last thought before sleep claimed him.

The expected scene with the family never happened. He approached breakfast the next morning like a man going to his own execution, but Leia merely kissed him on the cheek as he sat down. He caught AmiIyn smiling and shaking her head at him and shrugged. Chewie put him in a headlock and ruffled his hair and Malla slapped him on the shoulder before also kissing him on the cheek. The rest of the family straggled in and he got some gesture of affection from each of them.

The only reference to the day before came when one of Lando and Val’s grandkids climbed into his lap. Henry pronounced with all seriousness “When you do really get married I want to be a flower boy!”

“If and when I ever do really get married, I’ll let you know,” he promised. He got a firm nod in response and the boy slid off his lap and made a beeline for the pastry table. Val snagged him before he got halfway there and slung him over her shoulder.

“Eggs first, you little scoundrel.”

Much to his surprise, the rest of the cruise proved tolerable. It was a good thing, too, because the next time he saw Hux he couldn’t help remember that kiss and that dance. Things seemed awkward between them now. The easy conversation they’d shared before was now stilted and full of pauses. The times that he felt the need to get away grew less frequent, and he stopped texting Hux his whereabouts when he did slip away. when Hux didn’t reach out to him either he didn’t know whether to be disappointed or relieved.

There were multiple events scheduled for the evening before they made port, and that proved to be too much. He was waffling back and forth between sending Hux a message, and saved from deciding when Hux texted him.

_ “We survived” celebration? _

Rey caught his eye and grimaced as he made his way to the edge of the crowd, but made a shooing gesture, and he escaped without incident.

They met back on the aft deck. It had a certain symmetry to it, the last night in the place where they’d started all this. Kylo had tucked a bottle of champagne under one arm as he snuck out but couldn’t manage to get any glasses. When Hux showed up he popped the cork, laughing as the champagne bubbled out. He took the first swallow, then handed the bottle over.

“Hard to believe this is the last night,” Hux said before taking a drink.

“Yeah. It ended up being a lot less painful than I expected. Thanks for that.”

“Yes. Indeed. It’s been an experience.”

“So what now?”

“We’ve got a couple days of sightseeing planned before flying back. I may bow out and stay at the hotel. Drinks by the pool are a good sight better than being crammed on a bus and rubbernecking at tourist attractions.” Hux took another swallow before handing the bottle back. “And you?”

“We’ll spend the day together, probably doing some of those touristy things, and have dinner tomorrow night and then the family flies back tomorrow morning too.”

“And then you’ll be free at last?”

“Yeah.” It was what he’d wanted, but he couldn’t help feeling a little wistful.

They finished the champagne in that companionable silence that had drawn him to Hux to begin with. He let Hux have the last of it, contenting himself with watching from the corner of his eye. Silly to be envious of a bottle for touching those lips.

Instead of pushing on until morning and delaying the inevitable, he decided to call it a night shortly after.

“I should turn in. Need to try to get some sleep or tomorrow will be hell.”

“You’re probably right. Well, then. Thank you, Kylo, for making this voyage bearable.”

“Yeah, same.”

He stood and held out his hand to Hux to help him up. Hux took it, but didn’t let go once he’d risen.

“I really want to kiss you again,” slipped out before Kylo could catch the words.

“Thank goodness.”

There were no crowds, no noise, no music this time. Just Hux. Hands buried themselves in his hair as lips met his and nothing else existed in the world except the stars overhead and the man in his arms.

He let go at last, reluctantly, but there wasn’t any use in torturing himself any more. Hux seemed to feel the same.

“Well, all right then. Goodbye, Kylo.”

“Goodbye, Hux.”

He carefully didn’t watch Hux leave.

  
  


           With a new start ahead of him, he left Kylo behind as he disembarked from the boat. On his first day of classes, for the first time in years he introduced himself to as Ben Solo.

           He dove into school, immersing himself in the curriculum. It seemed like no time at all between his first day and his last, when, thesis defended and degree obtained, he crossed the stage in his cap and gown.

Leia and Han showed up for his graduation and took him out to dinner afterwards. It was pleasant, surprisingly so. He didn’t feel like he was under interrogation as they discussed his plans. He’d had two job offers and hadn’t decided between either. One was in the States and the other in the UK. Leia didn’t pressure him into taking the one closer to home. Instead she listened and he discussed the pros and cons of each. Her response surprised him.

“It sounds like you’re leaning towards Portsmouth, and it does seem like the better fit for you.”

He didn’t realize he was gaping at her until Han leaned over and pushed his chin up.

“You’re going to catch flies like that, kid.”

Well, then. Miracles do happen.

They finished dinner on a pleasant note, with hugs and promises on his part to email and call more.

Six weeks later, after seemingly more paperwork than his thesis had entailed, Ben Solo settled in to a new apartment (flat, he reminded himself). He had a week to unpack and acclimate himself before reporting in for his first day.

He set Friday aside to visit London, indulging in an urge to see Big Ben. Chewie had started calling him that when he began sprouting up as a teen. He’d hated it at the time, but now he could look back at it fondly.

He could hardly believe it when he heard someone calling out to him.

“Kylo? Is that you?”

It didn’t register at first. Nobody had called him Kylo since that cruise to Australia. It took even longer to recognize the voice, and he didn’t place it until he saw a shock of red hair under the arm waving at him. He stared in amazement, hardly believing his luck, as the last person he ever expected to run into wove between cars to cross the street to where he stood.

“Hux?”

“It is you. I thought I was imagining things.” Hux was a bit out of breath, and his hair fell across his forehead, broken free of the constraints of the gel he’d used to slick it back. Resisting the urge to smooth it back, Kylo stuck his hand out instead, taking Hux’s and giving it a brisk shake. He let it go after a couple of brisk pumps so he didn’t do anything stupid like hold onto it for the rest of their conversation, or use it to pull Hux closer to him.

“Sorry it took me a bit to realize someone was talking to me. No one’s called me Kylo in years now.”

Hux looked good. Better than good. He’d made himself forget how handsome Hux was.

“You look good,” Hux said, an echo of his thoughts that made him blush. “All that Australian sunlight, I suppose.”

He said something in response. It must have made sense, because Hux didn’t look at him strangely.

“I never thought I’d see you again, let alone run into you at random. I’d have thought you’d be back in the States by now.”

“No, actually, I live here now. Well, not here here,” he hastened to add. “I’m in Portsmouth. Start next week at the institute. Research position with some teaching.”

“No! I just moved here myself. Well, not London here either. I’m in Winchester.”

He was grinning like a fool, he realized, but Hux was smiling at him too, and still talking. It took a bit for the words to catch up, and he could hardly believe it when he did.

__ __ “Do you have time to get a cup of coffee? I’d love to catch up.” Hux had asked.

“Love to,” he said, hoping the pause before he’d answered wouldn’t put Hux off. He hadn’t seemed to notice, though.

“Great. It’s a bit touristy around here, but I know of a good spot a few blocks away.”

A few blocks turned out to be six, but Ben didn’t mind. He’d forgotten how easy it had been to talk to Hux. They took turns asking questions on the way and before Ben realized it Hux was opening a door and gesturing him into a small cafe.

When they sat down Hux grimaced and stood again, digging a set of keys out of his pocket. A familiar piece of plastic between the keys caught Ben’s eye.

“Oh, wow, you still have your keychain.”

A faint pink colored Hux’s cheeks. “Yes, I guess I do. Funny, yes?”

“Mine broke about a year ago.” Ben hesitated, then pushed back the sleeve of his shirt and uncovered the leather bracelet he never took off. Taking a deep breath, he popped the snaps one by one to reveal the brilliant inks of his OHAI tattoo.

“Oh.” Hux’s hand twitched where it lay, as if he wanted to reach out and touch.

“Yeah, got it done a couple of weeks after. Funny, yeah?”

An awkward silence overtook them and they both took sips of their drinks to fill it.

“Do you ever wonder …” Hux started to say, then broke off, shaking his head. “Never mind. Silly thought.”

“You? Never.”

“Hah. I’ll have you know I’ve lightened up. Phasma even says so.”

“Phasma was the blonde, right? With that swimsuit?”

“Yes, and she’ll be over the moon that you remembered. She loves that swimsuit with an unholy passion.”

“It certainly was memorable.” Hux caught his eye as they shared a grin and Ben’s heart skipped a beat. “But anyways, you were saying?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I just think, from time to time. Would something like that ever really work? Two people who hardly know each other, getting married on the spur of the moment? I mean I didn’t even know your name wasn’t Kylo until the morning after.”

All the saliva in his mouth evaporated as Hux met his gaze again, then looked away, fiddling with the brightly colored piece of plastic. The letter O had nearly worn away, Ben saw.

“I don’t know,” he said, and watched as something tightened around Hux’s eyes. Taking a breath, he added in a rush, “but I’ve always been sorry we didn’t try.”

Hesitatingly, he reached out to take Hux’s hand, giving Hux time to draw away. When their fingers brushed, he could hear Hux’s breath catch, and then fingers intertwined with his own.   

“Maybe we could talk about this some more. Perhaps over dinner?” Hux’s diffident tone was belied by his grip on Ben’s hand.

“I’d like that.”

“No posts on social media, though. I think that might drive people to contemplate murder.”

“Definitely not.”

  
  


**_One year later:_ **

  
  


           “Ready?”    

“Yes. Let’s do this.”

Hux leaned back against Ben, their upraised hands between their faces. His and Ben’s rings stood out on their fingers, bands of black and silver in sharp contrast against both their skin. Ben snapped a picture with his phone, then they shuffled around so Hux could take another with his.

They posted the pictures simultaneously.

It’s for real this time, both their captions read.

“Okay, power off now. It’s tradition to them stew for the rest of the evening, after all.” Hux held down the button on his phone until the screen went dark. Ben shook his head, but followed suit.

“You do realize this is going to encourage that murder you wanted to avoid?”

“Ben, darling, I am not going to spend our wedding night answering emails and phone calls from your family.”

“Like your friends won’t be as bad.”

“Yes, but there aren’t nearly as many of them. Now pour the champagne.”

“No, wait. One more thing to do first.”

Opening up YouTube on his laptop, Ben typed a few words into the search bar. When the opening strains began to play, he raised his glass.

  
  


_ We'll meet beyond the shore _

_ We'll kiss just like before _

_ Happy we'll be beyond the sea _

_ And never again I'll go sailing _

  
  


[](https://www.flickr.com/photos/166989358@N08/30853890318/)

**Author's Note:**

> Relationship tree that I spent way too much time making up for one paragraph reference in this story:
> 
>  [And the-pudding-is-a-lie drew Phasma in her silver swimsuit!](http://the-pudding-is-a-lie.tumblr.com/post/178321892187/phasma-in-a-chrome-bikini-for-thewightknight-who)
> 
> Thanks for reading! If you want to say hi, [check out my profile](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thewightknight/profile) for where I’m currently hanging out on this here internet thing.


End file.
